6-7-14

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Today's NHL Picks

NY Rangers at Los Angeles

The Rangers look to bounce back from their 3-2 loss in Game 1 and come into Saturday's contest with an 8-3 record in their last 11 games after scoring 2 goals or less in their previous game. New York is the pick (+135) according to Dunkel, which has the Rangers favored by 1. Dunkel Pick: New York (+135). Here are all of today's playoff picks.

SATURDAY, JUNE 7 Time Posted: 9:00 a.m. EST (6/6)

Game 53-54: NY Rangers at Los Angeles (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: NY Rangers 14.131; Los Angeles 12.943 Dunkel Line & Total: NY Rangers by 1; 6 Vegas Line & Total: Los Angeles (-155); 5 Dunkel Pick: NY Rangers (+135); Over

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Game of the Day: Rangers at Kings

New York Rangers at Los Angeles Kings (-152, 5)

Kings lead the series 1-0

After squandering an early two-goal lead in series opener, the New York Rangers look to avoid a two-game deficit against the host Los Angeles Kings when the Stanley Cup final resumes on Saturday. Justin Williams took advantage of defenseman Dan Girardi's turnover and scored 4:36 into overtime as Los Angeles skated to a 3-2 victory in Game 1 on Wednesday. The tally allowed the Kings to become the first team since the 1992 Chicago Blackhawks to overcome a two-goal deficit in consecutive games during a conference or Stanley Cup final, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

"I don't know, it's not a perfect situation," Los Angeles forward Marian Gaborik said of the early deficit. "We can't always get away with this, losing 2-0 right from the get-go." New York's speed played a significant role in that as Benoit Pouliot and Carl Hagelin scored 1:42 apart early in the first period. "For us to win, we're going to have to find a way to play to our strengths. Speed is definitely one of them," Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBC, CBC, RDS

LINE MOVES: The line opened at Kings -155, but was bet down slightly to -152.

INJURY REPORT: Rangers: G Cam Talbot (Ques-Undiscolsed), LW Daniel Carcillo (Out-Suspension) Kings: D Robyn Regehr (Ques-Knee)

WHAT BOOKS SAY: "The Rangers look to bounce back in Game 2 after losing a heart breaker in overtime of game 1. We now have the Kings at -300 to win the Cup and the Rangers at +250. So far we are seeing good two way action on the money line and 75% of the action on the Kings puck line of -1.5." - Michael Stewart of CarbonSports.ag

ABOUT THE RANGERS: While Girardi accepted the blame for his costly turnover, Ryan McDonagh was quick to note that he left the zone before his defense partner. "(Girardi's) a guy that has been through so many ups and downs in his career, we know he's going to bounce back and be a huge part of our Game 2 here." McDonagh logged 31:12 of ice time in Game 1, but that number should dip as fellow blue-liner John Moore is expected to return after serving his two-game suspension for an illegal check to the head of Montreal's Dale Weise.

ABOUT THE KINGS: Defenseman Drew Doughty admittedly rode an emotional roller coaster in the series opener, recording a minus-2 after the first period before scoring a highlight-reel goal and setting up another tally to help Los Angeles rally to victory. "When I get angry, I kind of turn it on," said Doughty, who broke his own franchise record for points (17) by a blue-liner set during the Kings' Stanley Cup-winning season in 2012. Williams has traditionally been a pretty mellow fellow, but he has reason to be elated after setting career highs in goals (eight), assists (12) and points (20) in a single postseason year.

TRENDS:

* Kings are 21-7 in their last 28 following a win
* Under is 12-4-4 in Rangers last 20 vs. a team with a winning record
* Under is 4-0-3 in last 7 meetings in Los Angeles
* Home team is 5-2 in last 7 meetings

COVERS CONSENSUS: Sixty-one percent of the covers bettors are taking the Kings -152 with seventy-one percent on the over.

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Rangers try to rebound vs. Kings in Game 2
By THE SPORTS XCHANGE

New York Rangers coach Alain Vigneault fully understands the Los Angeles Kings' brand of hockey.

For seven years, he coached against the Kings when he was with Western Conference rival Vancouver.

With that knowledge, Vigneault's Rangers will try to rebound from Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final -- the Kings came from behind to win 3-2 in overtime -- when they take the ice at Staples Center on Saturday (7 p.m. ET, NBC).

The Rangers used their speed to seize a 2-0 lead in the first period of Game 1 on Wednesday. Then the Kings outplayed New York for the remainder of the game.

"For us to win," Vigneault said, "we're going to have to find a way to play to our strengths.

"Let me put it another way: We need to find a way to play to our strengths. They're probably the best opponent we've met. For us to win, we're going to have to find a way to play to our strengths. Speed is definitely one of them."

Right winger Justin Williams won the game in the fifth minute of overtime when his goal following a turnover completed the Kings' rally from a 2-0 first-period deficit. The comeback marked the fourth time in seven days the Kings erased a two-goal deficit. They did it three times against the Chicago Blackhawks in the Western Conference Final, winning two of the three.

In Game 1, the Rangers put a scare into the Kings on breakaway goals by left wingers Benoit Pouliot and Carl Hagelin 102 seconds apart in the first period. Hagelin had another breakaway in the last minute of the third period, but his chance at winning the game in regulation was thwarted by goaltender Jonathan Quick's glove.

The Rangers' speed gave the Kings difficulty.

"As a team, our speed is one of our strengths, and in order to have success, we have to play to our strengths," Hagelin said.

Kings coach Darryl Sutter likes his team's own speed.

"They're a fast team. We're a fast team," Sutter said Friday. "I mean, when we were down to San Jose, there was people in this room that said, 'Geez, you guys are a slow team.' The puck goes faster than the feet do."

Kings defenseman Robyn Regehr, who has been out for a month with a knee injury, is expected to be back in the lineup for Game 2.

"He'll probably play," Sutter said after Friday's practice.

Regehr had been cleared to play before the start of the series but sat out of Wednesday's game with an eye toward possibly returning Saturday.

"I feel ready," Regehr said. "It just comes down to a coach's decision, what they want to do with the lineup. ... I feel good."

The Rangers also want to step up their physical game in Game 2.

"We knew they were going to push, test us physically," New York defenseman Ryan McDonagh said. "I thought we matched it pretty well. I thought especially the early part of the game there, we were able to break their forecheck, get out of our zone. They got a few more opportunities in the third because of their forecheck.

"For the majority of the game, I felt we were matching them physically. We had some big hits ourselves. We understand they're going to be physical on us, and we're not going to shy away from it for sure. We've got to look for opportunities to be physical on them for our forecheck, our speed. Doesn't necessarily have to be a big hit, but utilizing our legs, getting on the right side of guys, creating turnovers is part of being physical too. We feel we can play that game as well."

Sutter was asked about the Kings' camaraderie and the uniqueness of his team.

"That's why you're still playing," he said. "It's why there's only two teams still playing. It's why the New York Rangers are still playing.

"(I've) said it over and over and over. It's not about the star factor; it's about the complete package.

"We're a very good team for good reasons. Not just come to the rink and play. There's a lot of preparation.

"The team's matured a lot in the last couple years. That's because guys came into that role. It's still a really young team. Everybody talks about it being an experienced team. They're a playoff-proven team. But there's still lots to learn."

Sutter said he is only focused on Game 2.

"Game 1 was an elimination game. Game 2 is an elimination game," he said. "When it's over, then we'll answer that question going into Game 3 and we'll answer it going into Game 4 and we'll answer it as we go forward."

Vigneault doesn't think there is an advantage -- even after a loss -- to having the two days in between games.

"It's the same for both teams," he said Friday. "I don't see an advantage in it. I mean, the schedule is what it is. At this time, they said two days in between games. So took yesterday off. Guys got away from the game a little bit.

"Today we had a good practice. We had a good meeting before. We're going to be ready tomorrow."

Vigneault was asked about whether overtimes in the playoffs take physicality away from teams or tire teams out.

"In an overtime, you know, one shot could be a win or could be a loss," he said. "I mean, I look at the last game. In my estimation, we're probably going on a three-on-two and then the puck bounced and then we get caught.

"You try and continue to play to your strengths and you hope that you're going to get one past the opposition.

"(Fatigue's) a factor obviously for both teams once you get into overtime."

[Can'tPickAWinner]

MLB

Hot pitchers
-- Volquez is 2-0, 2.81 in his last three starts.
-- Simon is 3-1, 3.28 in his last four starts.
-- Hudson is 2-0, 0.00 (14 IP) in his last two starts. Colon is 3-0, 2.05 in his last four starts.

-- Gray is 2-0, 3.04 in his last four starts.
-- Elias is 1-1, 2.61 in his last three starts.
-- Lester is 1-0, 2.07 in his last two starts.
-- Sale is 5-0, 1.59 in seven starts this season. Shoemaker is 3-0, 3.80 in his four starts this season.

-- Buehrle is 6-0, 2.44 in his last seven starts.

Cold pitchers
-- Samardzija is 1-2, 6.55 in his last four starts. Wolf is 1-1, 5.73 in two starts.
-- Garza is 2-2, 5.36 in his last seven starts.
-- Colorado is 0-6 when Chacin starts (0-4, 5.51). Greinke is 1-1, 4.82 in his last three starts.
-- Hernandez is 0-2, 4.67 in his last three starts.
-- Cashner is 0-4, 4.66 in his last five starts; Padres were shut out in three of his last four outings. Treinen is 0-2, 4.22 in his last two starts.
-- Miley is 0-3, 4.91 in his last four starts. Santana is 1-2, 7.83 in his last four.

-- Feldman is 1-2, 11.15 in his last three starts. Gibson is 0-2, 4.76 in his last three outings.
-- Tomlin is 0-2, 5.94 in his last three starts. Tepesch has a 6.00 RA in his last three starts.
-- Cobb is 0-2, 7.36 in his last couple starts.
-- Gausman allowed five runs in four IP in his first '14 start.
-- Phelps is 0-3, 6.16 in his last three starts. Duffy is 2-2, 4.30 in his last four.
-- Scherzer is 0-1, 7.62 in his last three starts.

-- Miller is 0-3, 4.42 in his last three road starts.


Pitchers allowing runs in first inning:
-- Wolf 1-2; Samardzija 6-12 (5 of last 7)
-- Garza 5-13; Volquez 4-11
-- Greinke 2-12; Chacin 3-6
-- Hernandez 4-10; Simon 7-10
-- Colon 3-12; Hudson 0-11
-- Treinen 0-2; Cashner 3-9
-- Santana 3-10; Miley 2-13

-- Feldman 2-9; Gibson 3-11
-- Tomlin 1-5; Tepesch 2-4
-- Elias 3-12; Cobb 2-6
-- Gray 4-12; Gausman 0-1
-- Phelps 0-6; Duffy 1-6
-- Lester 4-12 (3 of last 4); Scherzer 4-12
-- Sale 0-7; Shoemaker 0-4

-- Miller 0-12; Buehrle 2-12

Totals
-- Six of last seven Cub games went over total.
-- Over is 5-1-1 in last seven Milwaukee road games.
-- Nine of eleven Simon starts stayed under total.
-- Seven of last ten Colorado games went over.
-- Under is 18-7 in Arizona's last 25 games.
-- Six of last seven San Diego games stayed under.
-- Five of last seven Hudson starts stayed under.

-- 13 of last 18 Baltimore games went over total.
-- Under is 7-1-1 in last nine Boston games; over is 6-1-1 in last eight Detroit home games.
-- Four of last five Tampa Bay home games went over.
-- Four of last five Cleveland road games stayed under. Seven of last eight Texas games went over the total.
-- Under is 15-6-1 in last 22 Bronx games.
-- Four of last five Houston games went over total.
-- Eight of last ten White Sox games stayed under; seven of last eight Angel games went over.

-- Over is 10-6-1 in last seventeen St Louis games.


Hot teams
-- Miami won six of its last eight road games; Cubs won seven of their last eight home games.
-- Pirates won five of last six home games.
-- Braves won last four road games. Arizona won three of its last four games.
-- Washington won six of its last seven games.
-- Giants won eight of their last ten games.

-- Oakland won six of its last seven games. Orioles won four of their last six.
-- Mariners won five of their last seven games.
-- Bronx won five of its last six home games.
-- Astros won their last six road games.
-- Rangers won ten of their last sixteen games.

-- Toronto won 18 of its last 21 games.


Cold teams
-- Phillies lost six of their last seven games. Cincinnati lost five of its last six home games.
-- Milwaukee lost 11 of its last 17 road games.
-- Colorado lost its last eight games. Dodgers lost five of last eight.
-- San Diego is 6-11 in its last seventeen games.
-- Mets lost their last four games.

-- Detroit lost six of last nine at home. Red Sox lost their last four games.
-- Tampa Bay lost ten of its last eleven games.
-- Kansas City lost five of its last six home games.
-- Indians lost six of their last seven road games.
-- Minnesota lost ten of its last fourteen games.
-- White Sox are 6-7 in their last thirteen road games. Angels lost five of their last seven games.

-- Cardinals lost eight of their last ten games.

Umpires
-- Mia-Chi-- Both Randazzo games this season stayed under.
-- Mil-Pitt-- Under is 76-63 in Everitt games, since 2010.
-- LA-Col-- Last eight Porter games stayed under the total.
-- Phil-Cin-- Underdogs won six of nine Guccione games.
-- NY-SF-- Over is 7-2-1 in West games this season.
-- Wsh-SD-- Five of last six Emmel games went over.
-- Atl-Az-- Underdogs won last six Wegner games.

-- Hst-Min-- Since 2010, home side is 84-55 in Marquez games.
-- Cle-Tex-- Favorites won ten of thirteen Ripperger games.
-- Sea-TB-- Seven of last ten TWelke games stayed under.
-- A's-Balt--Last three Hernandez games went over total.
-- NY-KC-- Eight of last eleven Davidson games stayed under.
-- Bos-Det-- Under is 7-4 in last eleven Carapazza games.
-- Chi-LA-- Four of last five Cuzzi games stayed under.

-- StL-Tor-- Five of last six Culbreth games went over total.

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Gamblers Data


Free Plays Saturday

Dodgers -140


Braves/Dbacks Over 8

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Free Selection from Arthur Ralph Sports

Free Play Sat Red Sox w/ Lester + 140

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Mighty Quinn

Mighty missed with the Marlins on Friday and likes Wicked Strong in the Belmont Stakes ($25 win and place) on Saturday.

The deficit is 425 sirignanos.

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Baseball Crusher
Milwaukee Brewers -109 over Pittsburgh Pirates
(System Record: 37-0, won last 2 games)
Overall Record: 37-30

Rest of the Plays
Los Angeles Dodgers -134 over Colorado Rockies
Detroit Tigers -136 over Boston Red Sox
Chicago White Sox -125 over LA Angels

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Hockey Crusher
New York Rangers +138 over LA Kings
(Playoff Record: system 24-2: overall 24-16-1, won last game)
(Regular Season Record: 91-4)
Overall Record: 115-90-3

Rest of the Plays
Los Angeles Kings + NY Rangers UNDER 5

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Cappers Access

Pirates -113
W. Sox -125
Rangers(NHL) +135

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Soccer Crusher
Sampaio Correa + Avai UNDER 2.5
This match is happening in Brazil
(System Record: 586-21, won last 2 games)
Overall Record: 586-488-85

[Can'tPickAWinner]

WNBA Basketball Picks

Phoenix at San Antonio

The Mercury look to bounce back from last night's 94-78 loss to Tulsa and come into tonight's contest with a 4-1 ATS record in their last 5 games following a SU defeat. Phoenix is the pick (-1 1/2) according to Dunkel, which has the Mercury favored by 7. Dunkel Pick: Phoenix (-1 1/2). Here are all of today's WNBA picks.

SATURDAY, JUNE 7 Time Posted: 8:00 a.m. EST

Game 651-652: Indiana at Connecticut (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Indiana 110.775; Connecticut 108.775 Dunkel Line & Total: Indiana by 2; 135 Vegas Line & Total: Connecticut by 3 1/2; 142 Dunkel Pick: Indiana (+3 1/2); Under

Game 653-654: Chicago at Atlanta (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Chicago 108.262; Atlanta 114.762 Dunkel Line & Total: Atlanta by 6 1/2; 165 Vegas Line & Total: Atlanta by 4 1/2; 158 Dunkel Pick: Atlanta (-4 1/2); Over

Game 655-656: Phoenix at San Antonio (8:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Phoenix 117.878; San Antonio 110.930 Dunkel Line & Total: Phoenix by 7; 164 Vegas Line & Total: Phoenix by 1 1/2; 158 Dunkel Pick: Phoenix (-1 1/2); Over

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StatFox Super Situations

WNBA | CHICAGO at ATLANTA
Play Under - Road teams where the total is greater than or equal to 140 very good team - outscoring their opponents by 6+ points/game
207-124 since 1997. ( 62.5% | 70.6 units )
1-2 this year. ( 33.3% | -1.2 units )

WNBA | CHICAGO at ATLANTA
Play Against - Underdogs vs the money line (CHICAGO) after a loss by 10 points or more against opponent after scoring 75 points or more in 3 straight games
125-30 since 1997. ( 80.6% | 0.0 units )
2-1 this year. ( 66.7% | 0.0 units )

WNBA | INDIANA at CONNECTICUT
Play Under - Home teams where the first half total is between 65.5 and 70.5 points revenging a loss versus opponent against opponent off a road win against a division rival
46-18 since 1997. ( 71.9% | 26.2 units )

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POWERPLAYWINS

Power Play Of The Day

* MLB Detroit Tigers -130 (Scherzer)